Improvement in automatic telegraph-keys



L. S. CRANDALI.. Automatic Telegraph-Key.

.Patented Sept. 28,1875.

No. I68,l43.

4 I, I r VIII/Ill, h

WITNESSES UNITED: STATES PATENT OFFICE 'LUOIEN s. ORANDALL, or new YORK, N.

IMPROVEMENT m AUTOMATIC TELEGRAPH-KEYS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 168,143, dated September 28, 1875; application filed August 21, 1815.

CASE A.

To all whom it may concern: I

Be it known that I, LUcIEN S. CRANDAL of the city, county, and State of New York, have invented a new and Improved Automatic Telegraph-Key, of which the following is a specification 1n the accompanying drawing, Figure 1 represents a top view; Fig. 2, a vertical transverse section on the line 0 c, Fig. 1; Fig. 3, an end elevation; and Fig. 4, detail side viewsof the actuating cam-pieces of my improved auto matic telegraph-key.

Similar letters of reference indicate correcams of varying shapes, in, contact with projecting arms or the shaft, that operates, by a spring-pawl, a ratchet-wheel, which closes the circuit by the contact of the teeth with a metal tongue connected to one pole, ,while the key- Shit-ft and ratchets are connected to the other p0 e. t Iii the drawing, A represents a metallic base plate of my automatic telegraph-key, which is provided with a series of spring-acted keys or levers, B, that are pivoted to a shaft, B. The keys or levers B are of elbow shape and placed sidewise of each other, as many levers being arranged as there are letters of.the alphabet, each key having a button with a letter marked thereon, and grouped in such a manner that the more frequently used letters are placed together, while the less frequently occurring lettors are placed near the ends. Each key B is constructed near its angular part with a cam or contact plate, 0, that passes in front of and operates a projecting pointed arm, I), of a longitudinal s'h'aft, D, placed in front of the camplates 0. Each depression of a key causes the shaft to turn partially upon its axis, which movement is made intermittent or irregular, according to the face of the cam. The-shaft D is connected, by a fixed arm and pivoted spring-pawl D with a ratchet-wheel, E, which is moved according to the face of the cam, and held in stationary position,while the shaft D is returned into its former position, by a spiral spring attached to the pivot-arm D simultane ously with the return of the cam. A metal tongue, F, is secured, by an insulated basepiece, to the base-plate of the key, and serves, in place of the ordinary Morse key, to open and close ,the circuit by contact or non-contact with. the teeth of the ratchet-wheel. The movement of the ratchet-wheel iscontrolled by the shape of the cams G, which are made with step-shaped. projections and intermediate pieces of varying length, so that an irregular movement of the wheel is produced, to give, by the contact with the tongue, a dot, a dash, or a combination of both. When the metal tongue is not in contact witha tooth of the ratchet-wheel the circuit is open, as the base-plate and wheel are in connection with one, the tongu in connection with the other, pole of the battery. If the cam is so shaped that its contact with the crank-arm of the shaft moves the wheel forward one tooth, the tongue will come in contact therewith and close the circuit for the duration of the contact, registering a dot. If the cam is made with a straight extension-piece back of the step, moving the wheel, the tongue will stop or dwell on'the tooth moved ,during the passage of the cam over the arm of the shaft, and register a dash. The position of the tongue between the teeth of the ratchetwheel breaks the circuit and produces a space. If, therefore, every cam is shaped in suitable manner by steps and extensions, that the Morse character of the letter of its key is produced, words may be telegraphed mechanically by simply dcpressin g the required keys.

By some practice a very rapid and reliable mode of transmitting messages is produced, as

each key, when depressed, produces the exact correspond ng Morse character on the sounder, one shaft, ratchet-wheel, and tongue serving for all the keys jointly.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and. desire to secure by Letters Paten t- 1. An autonlatictelegraph -key composed of a series of pivoted spring keys or levers, provided with cam or contact pieces of Varying connected to one'poie, the tongue to the other pole, of the battery, to transmit messages hy mechanical means, substantially in the man;

ner and for the purpose set forth.

7 2. The shaft provided witha series of calm operated arms, D, and a single pawl-arm, having a spring-retractor, as and for the purnese setforth a s 3. In automatic telegraph-keys, the springkeys or finger-levers, provided with cam or contact pieceshaving step-shaped projections and intermediate extensions, forproducing the required feed of the ratchet and the dwell at points of contact and non-contact, substantially as specified.

'LUGIEN S. ()RANDALL= Witnesses:

T. B. MosHER,

ALEX. F. ROBERTS. 

